Family life can seem like one long stream of looking for things. Be it tap shoes, shin guards, leotards, water bottles, Ticonderoga pencils or sunscreen, the eternal quest to fulfill that cry of “Mom, where is my ____?” can drive even the saintliest mother to distraction.

The solution? Turn your hallway closet into a family command center. I’m not talking about one of those impossibly perfect-looking, incredibly organized mini “desks” – you know, the ones where family life is allegedly easily filed away in designer binders and the elegant dry erase calendar is all neatly filled in. Do you think those ever actually stay that way?